Sept. 17, 2005
Final Stats |
Quotes
Pocatello, ID --- Idaho State pretty much had their way with Montana-Western, rushing for 262 yards and four touchdowns while limiting the Bulldogs to just 156 total yards in a 37-0 blanking on Saturday afternoon.
The Bengals (2-1) entered the game with an 8-0 career mark against their NAIA foes with six shutouts, and the game never was in any serious doubt. Idaho State continued to prove their muscle on the ground, adding four more rushing touchdowns, giving them 10 on the season. Last year the Bengals had just eight for the season.
Idaho State got on the board in the first quarter when junior tight end Brandon Mennear, who tied for the team lead with three catches on the night, scored on an 11-yard pass from Matt Hagler. The score was the first of Mennear's career, and it came one week after his little brother Sterling scored his first career touchdown.
ISU then got back -to-back rushing touchdowns from Ken Cornist with a 2:01 span, the second set up by a 47-yard pass from Hagler to Akilah Lacey. Jaret Johnson's 24-yard field goal at the halftime gun put the Bengals up 23-0 at the break.
Hagler then added his fourth touchdown of the year on a 4th-and-1 play, and Cornist scored from two yards out to complete the scoring. Cornist ended the day with 120 yards on the ground, and Josh Barnett finished with 91. Hagler had a light day under center, going 10-for-16 for 156 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Defensively, the Bengals limited Western to 156 yards, and just 53 yards in the second half. The Bengals picked up four sacks, broke up four passes, forced a fumble, and picked off three other passes. Idaho State last shutout an opponent on October 26, 2002 when ISU blanked Weber State 34-0.
Larry Lewis, who moved into third place on the ISU career wins list with 35, was pleased with the outcome, as the Bengals have a matchup in Holt Arena next Saturday with #5 Eastern Washington on Homecoming.
"I really thought after those first two series that we stepped up our intensity, and that we took over the game, especially up front," said Lewis. Lewis was particularly happy with ISU's effort on the ground. "The offensive line is a group that just continues to want to get better. We can rotate those guys (Barnett and Cornist) compared to the Isaac Mitchell days or the Nick Whitworth days when we had one guy and rode that guy like a horse. Now, we have the ability to rotate guys in so we don't wear anybody out."
NOTES: The Bengals entered the game ranked 32nd in the Sports Network Poll and 31st in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll ... ISU has won 16 of their last 19 in Holt Arena ... ISU's streak of 15 straight scores in the red zone ended when back-up quarterback Luke Sniewski threw an interception in the end zone ... On ISU's 96-yard fourth quarter touchdown drive, Ken Cornist ran for 81 yards, and ISU got the other 15 yards courtesy of a UMW personal foul ... ISU controlled the ball for 12:57 of the fourth quarter ... Shedrack Okoebor caught one pass, making him the seventh player in school history with four 10+ catch seasons ... ISU has allowed only one sack on the year, and none in the last 10 quarters ... ISU was 3-for-3 on fourth down, making them 5-for-5 on the year.
